About this episode

Susie Håkansson discusses her Chinese American identity and her impact on mathematics education over 60 years.

In this powerful episode of the TODOS Podcast, legendary mathematics educator Susie Håkansson opens up about her Chinese American identity and what it was like growing up as a Toisan American in 1940s–50s Los Angeles. A pioneering leader with over 60 years of leadership in mathematics education, Susie shares how her cultural identity shaped her journey as a teacher, mentor, and advocate. Tune in to hear deeply personal reflections on invisibility, resilience, and how one woman helped build a more just and equitable world in mathematics education. This is our last interview episode of the season, an interview that we've been wanting to do for more than 20 years! Transcripts for this episode are in this folder.

People in this episode

Guest: Susie Håkansson

Topics covered

• mathematics education
• cultural identity
• resilience
• advocacy
• equity in education

Keywords

• mathematics
• education
• cultural identity
• Toisan American
• advocacy
• equity
• resilience

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: TODOS Mathematics for ALL

Places: Los Angeles

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• S5E4: How Administrators Make a Difference with John Staley & Denise Thornton · February 3, 2026 · 54 min
• S5E3: Grounded in Place with Guadalupe Lozano · November 18, 2025 · 46 min
• S5E2: Enacting Antiracist Teaching Practices through Math Modeling with Will Tidwell · November 12, 2025 · 47 min
• S5E1: Teaser · November 4, 2025 · 17 min

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